The portrait
by Snoofeli
Summary: Although she had never shown anyone her sketch book she felt it would be alright that he saw it


Yes..I don't own Kingdom hearts or what not

It was sunset, the sky glowed tangerine orange, white fluffy clouds like marshmallows with a tint of pink peach drifted by slowly. The sun, golden as an egg's yolk shared its last rays of light for the day on all that was in twilight town.

She bought a dainty hand to shield herself from the blinding sunlight which bought out the golden luminescence in her fair blonde shoulder length hair. Surprisingly, having lived in twilight town all her life she never got sick of the beautiful sunset and the chime of the clock tower bells that rang when the sun descended below the hills.

Humming quietly to herself she picked up a pink feathered duster and began dusting the shelves of canned peas, jam, biscuits and other food items. The summer vacation was nearly over and all she had done this summer was work at the twilight grocery store. Not one trip to the beach, where all the other kids spent their holidays, playing blitzball and eating pretzels. She gave a soft hearted sigh.

"_There goes another summer holidays…. Maybe I should go to the beach this time"_

She knew she was kidding herself. There was no way she could go.

How could she when her mother was so frail and weak, sick in bed for all these years?

How could she when she had to pay the bills? The electricity? Her mother's medicine?

She felt ashamed for having these selfish thoughts.

"_I-I can't think about the beach…not now…not ever. I have to look after mom. how can I think like that… after all the years she's worked so hard to raise me?"_

Namine had never met her father. Her mother had told her he was lost to the heartless before she was born.

_FlashBack_

"_Why did the heartless take daddy away?" , Namine asked innocently_

_Her mothers eyes brimmed with held back tears as she smiled gently tucking strands of blond hair behind Namine's ears._

"_He….The heartless , they're very bad Namine…Your daddy was a good man, he fought those heartless with all his strength…and when all his strength was gone. They took him."_

_Her mother looked intently into Namine's sparkling blue eyes._

"_But the heartless will never be able to take you…if you find that light even in the darkest of times and you hold onto it. They won't be able to take you no matter what"_

"_But mommy where will I find the light?" ,She inquired curiously._

_Her mother smiled again. You'll understand one day…when you're a big girl"_

_End of Flash back _

Till this day she still contemplated about what her mother had said.

"_What kind of light?...Is it the sun's rays? The moon's shine? Or is it something else…"_

She shook the thoughts out of her head as she set her mind onto closing the store.

While dusting the drawers under the table, she found her sketch book. She gently dropped the feather duster, taking a moment to reminisce in her dreams and hopes on paper. That sketch book was her. It contained everything she had hoped and wished for, things that she couldn't have. There were pictures of everything Birds flying free, flower and plants, children playing happily without a care in the world. Oh how she wished she could be a child again, her mother wasn't sick and would make oatmeal cookies on Sundays and they would walk together hand in hand to watch the sunset on the hill.

Then there was a picture of him.

His eyes, they were a deep stormy blue, yet still sparkled with life in the sun. She could gaze into them forever, become lost in those pools of dark blue.

His hair was short, blonde and spiky in all directions.

Then there was his smile.

The smile that gave her butterflies.

The smile that was sweeter than a melted chocolate bar.

The smile that was so carefree….

She admired him. A lot. Even though the only thing she ever said to him was "that will be a dollar and fifty cents thankyou".

But she would always see him, she would hear him say to his friends "Im going to be a rich and famous skate boarder one day, just you wait Ill kick your ass anyday!". His friend would then hit him playfully on the shoulder and call him a doofus and they they'd laugh. His laugh was even carefree and when she saw him skate she was just a little envious. Envious that he was living his dream and she was not.

Closing her sketch pad and stuffing it into her bag, she was about to turn over the open sign on the glass door when suddenly she saw him.

He was running.

Running towards her…no..the store.

Her heart beat quickened as he got closer until finally he came to a stop right outside the glass door huffing and puffing.

"excuse me miss are you still opened?"

Namine blinked hard. Snapping herself back to reality so that she wouldn't become lost in his eyes.

"Im sorry we're closed for the day please come back tomorrow"

She heard him silently curse under his breath. His eyes now were filled with disappointment as he muttered a soft "thanks" and began to walk away.

"wait…I-I gu-guess one last customer couldn't hurt" she said to him, wanting to take the disappointment from his eyes.

He turned around abruptly.

"Really?! That would be awesome", his voice was filled with excitement.

She smiled, as she let him into the store, happy that she was the one to lift his mood.

He walked over to the freeze, took out a single sea salt ice cream and walked over to the counter.

It was then she remembered she had already cashed out her till.

"How about I give you that one for free? I already cashed out of the register"

He was ecstatic, and the butterflies returned to her stomach once more.

"Woah you serious!?"

"Yup just this once though", she replied happily

"Thanks!! You're the best!!!!!"….I'll pay you back tomorrow"

"no..no it- it's alright I don't mind. Really"

He grinned, showing his pearly whites.

"By the way…I always see you here. what's your name?"

Namine was taken by surprised at his unusual gesture of friendship.

"My-my Name is Namine"

"Oh, Im Roxas by the way."

For a few moments they stood there just contently admiring eachother until a blond haired boy outside shouted "ROXAS HURRY UP".

"I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow……Namine"

She waved him off as he ran hurriedly outside.

Her body filled with a tingling sensation hearing him call her name for the first time.

She smiled to herself.

_Roxas………_

Namine sat on the wooden stool behind the counter. The cuckoo clock at the back read 1:15.

The old lady who owned the store had gone off on her lunch break and to search for her always-causing-trouble tabby cat that seemed to have run away. Not that it was a surprise.

The store was silent except for the the scritch scratch of a pencil against paper.

Usually during lunchtimes it was dead quite as all the customers had scurried off to Main Street for lunch and coffee. She took this time draw in her sketch book undisturbed by anyone.

She thought back to yesterday…

_Roxas….._

Thinking about him filled her with an unexplainably warm sensation.

_Ding ding ding_

Namine turned her attention towards her doorway preparing to serve a customer.

"good after-"

She stopped right in mid track as she realised who it was.

"Hey baby when's your next lunch break?" he purred, grinning slyly as he leaned over the counter, making himself comfortable.

"Go away Rai, I'm NOT interested", Namine's voice was filled with scorn and irritation.

"of course you are…just admit it….you find me irresistible". The sly grin still plastered on his tanned face he leaned forward hoping to meet her lips with his

She jerked back suddenly causing her to nearly fall of her stool

"Get away from me you PERV!" she screamed smacking his with her sketchbook.

"Hey what's that?" Rai said looking at her sketch book

Without even asking for permission the Buff boy snatched the sketchbook from Namine's grasp.

"HEY GIVE THAT BACK!!" she shouted helplessly while Rai kept the sketchbook a safe distance away form her.

He laughed wickidly as she tried to reach for her sketch book but her attempts were futile.

After many attempts Namine ha manages to get a grip on the sketch book.. She pulled with all her might, knowing it was useless as he was way stronger than her.

"GIVE THAT BACK TO ME IT'S NOT YOURS!!!!!!!"

She used her free hand to punch him repeatedly.

Namine had never felt so ticked off in her life and she was filled by raging fury. She never showed anyone her sketchbook , it was private and Raijin was NOT going to be the first one to see it in a million years.

"Hey!!!! You leave her alone you bastard!!!", a third voice appeared in the store.

It was Roxas

"Stay out of this Skater boy!!" Raijin's voice was filled with malice and he gave a swift pull of the sketch book causing one of the drawings to be ripped apart. Namine watched in horror as time stopped…The ripped crumbled drawing drifted gently to the floor as gently as a feather.

_No…no..NOOOOO!!!_

It was the drawing of Roxas.

It was her favourite.

The piece of work she put most work into…

Her vision was clouded with tears but she would not let them fall.

She wouldn't give him that satisfaction.

"I….uhh"

Raijin was at a loss for words although he had intently snatched away her sketchbook he had not meant for this to happen.

Before he could mutter another syllable Roxas' fist connected with his jaw sending him sprawled on the floor.

"You Fucking bastard!!!!!!!" Roxas was surprised at how much anger he was supporting. But he didn't let that stop him from punching Rai again.

Rai could feel the angry aura of Roxas. It made him scared..

"H-hey..it was her fault y'know if she had-" He was punched again before he could finish the sentence. Roxas was furious.

"Wait till I tell Seifer bout' this y'know!" and with that he ran out of his store. If he were a dog he would have gone running with his tail between his legs".

Roxas' face softened as he walked over to the distraught Namine.

"hey are you okay?"

"Y-yeah Im…I just..Im alright, thankyou Roxas if you weren't here I don't know what would have happened!" She was truly grateful. That sketch book was the world to her.

"here left me help". He walked over to the knocked down cans of peas and joined her in replacing them back on the shelf.

He noticed the ripped drawing on the ground and leaned over to pick up the two pieces holding a piece in each hand and aligning them so that he could see the whole picture.

Namine trembled, biting her bottom lip in a state of panic.

"_Oh no…He saw it!!! What if he thinks Im some kind of stalker or a murderer or some creepy person. he'd never want to see me ever AGAIN"_

"I-I can explain…it's just---"

He cut her off before she could string a proper sentence of explanation.

"You're…….a really good drawer Namine"

"_Huh? Did I just hear right…did he just compliment me and not call me a stalker and a creep?"_

She blushed at his comment. Butterflies flapping frantically in her stomach.

He sat down on the ground next to her…

"Uhh I know after the way Rai handled your sketch book you probably never want anyone to look through it again but…"

"Would it be ok if you show me?", Roxas asked with his eyes fixed to the ground. Namine noticed that his hands were fidgety and wondered why.

Although she had never shown anyone her sketch book she felt it would be alright that he saw it.

She shyly handed him her sketch book which he thanked her in return for.

Each page he turned further widened his smile.

"I guess you really want to be an artist huh?"

"Yeah…I've been drawing for as long as I can remember. It's my favourite hobby. When Im drawing all my worries seem to melt away and Im in the world of my picture"

Namine looked sadly to the ground, giving a sigh.

"But I can't"

"Why not? You're so good I'd kill to draw like that!"

And before she knew it. She had spilled her heart out to him. About her mother, why she has to work every vacation, her longing for freedom. She had never found anyone as easy to talk to as Roxas. There was just something about him that made her feel she could tell him everything, that he'd be here to listen.

"WHAT?! You've never been to the beach?" Roxas was shocked. It was what every kid in twilight town looked forward to each holidays.

"you know what? Im going to drag you to the beach one day whether you like it or not! and Im buying you pretzels too."

Namine laughed lightly at his comment.

"But I can't…my mother.."

"You know sometimes you just got to live for yourself, I mean your mother wouldn't want you to be missing out on everything because of her right?"

""It seems like you're the kind that does anything they can to help someone but once in awhile you gotta help yourself too or you'll be unhappy and I don't want that, you can't look after other people if you don't look after yourself"

"But I…."..Namine stopped. She looked at him and smiled knowing deep down that he was right.

A few minutes of silence went past when Roxas suddenly asked

"Hey…would it be alright if I have that picture" he said, pointing to the picture of him that was torn in half?

"But it's ruined…why would you want it now?" Namine replied sadly.

"I don't mind, it's still the best picture I've ever seen and not just because it's of me"

Namine laughed for the first time in a very long time and punched him teasingly in the arm and handed him the torn picture.

"Hey I have to go now but I'll come back. Ill come tomorrow and I'll have something for you"

"Huh? What is it?" Namine inquired quizzically.

"You'll see tomorrow", he waved and left the store.

Just in time to because the old lady returned a few moments later. With a struggling tabby cat in her arms.

The next day at lunch Roxas come into the store carrying a large rectangular paper bag.

"see?" he said, taking out the framed picture of him that Namine had given him. It was now fixed and you could barely see the tear.

"Im going to hang this on my bedroom wall where I can see it the moment I open my eyes in the morning" He said grinning from ear to ear.

"there's one more thing too"

He took out another sheet of paper and handed it to Namine.

She turned around the paper and was faced with a picture of herself. It was pencil drawn, abit smudgy and out of proportion but she loved it more than anything else in the world.

"Not bad huh? For a first time that is"

"Roxas….. thankyou..I I don't know what to say"

"hey it's only fair right?".

They both stood there smiling at eachother and then she let herself become lost. Lost in his eyes of sea blue. Slowly he leaned over the counter and she leaned forward in turn until their lips were a mere millimetre apart.

"Namine! I need you out at the back!"

The voice of the old lady snapped her back to reality as the realised the awkward situation they were in.

"Well I-I'd better go to the back…."

"y-yeah I better be off too"

Blushing furiously Roxas bid goodbye and turned towards the door.

He suddenly stopped in his tracks as he remembered something.

"Hey Namine wait!"

He grasped her hand placed a folded piece of paper in it and dashed off.

She pocketed the piece of paper in her white dress to be read later.

In the late evening Namine was sitting at the Wooden stool looking outside the window at the sunset.

She then remembered the piece of paper Roxas had given her.

She took it out of her pocket and carefully unfolded it. A five dollar note dropped out from the unfolded letter.

_Hey Namine. Don't worry too much I know that one day you're going to be a rich and famous artist then you could easily look after your mother. I can just see it now You'd have a small studio at sunset terrace. Right on sunset hill with a beautiful view and I'm your first customer._

_Your drawing is awesome! But It's only worth five bucks because that's all I have! Tomorrow im taking you to the beach. No excuses. You're going ot get the day off whether you like it or not so start packing!_

_From Roxas_

_(The someday rich and famous skater that will be richer than the rich and famous Namine :P)_

She folded the letter up again carefully and tucket it back into her pocket. Now she understood.

She had finally found her light.

"_I'll give the money back to him tomorrow"_

He never payed her back for that seasalt icecream he said he would did he?


End file.
